This invention relates to a fishing lure of the type known in the art as spinner bait, and more particularly to a fishing lure of this type wherein a flexible cable extending from the hook supporting member carries the spinner remote from the hook, and a rigid wire form also extending from the hook support member has its remote end slidably disposed for movement along the flexible cable, the wire form having the fishing line attached thereto intermediate its ends.
Sport fishing, and especially bass fishing, in recent times has experienced a large degree of popularity. Competitive events such as fishing tournaments with large monetary and other prizes awarded have grown from minor events to large events with an ever increasing number of participants and prizes. Generally prizes are awarded on the basis of the weight and number of fish caught in a given time. Consequently, a fishing lure which can expedite the quantity of the catch is of great significance to the angular.
The prior art abounds with fishing lures of various designs and constructions including those known as spinner bait, a lure which combines a weighted body having a hook and a spinner support wire attached thereto, one or more spinner blades connected to the wire, and a means in the wire, such as an eyelet, for attaching a fishing line. As the lure is pulled through the water by the fishing line the spinner blades rotate randomly. Additional fish attracting members such as a plastic worm or the like, or a plastic or rubber skirt is utilized to hide the hook and provide additional vibrations to the lure. However, the main attraction of a fish to a spinner bait lure is due to the vibration and flashing of the spinner blades.
The spinner bait lures of the prior art have made various attempts to provide increased vibration and flutter to the blades. For example, in Stanley U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,041 the wire extending from the lure weight and carrying the spinner blades has a first diameter extending from the weight to the fishing line attachment location, and a second but smaller diameter wire extending from that location to the spinner blade. This provides increased vibration to the lure. Similar results are claimed by a spinner bait having a flexible cable instead of the smaller diameter wire of Stanley. Another spinner bait lure uses a special blade bar hanger to permit the blades to stand up and rotate freely while falling. In Opperman et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,334, a spinner bait is disclosed wherein the fishing line passes through an eyelet formed in the wire extending from the weight to the spinner blades and is attached to the weight so that the weight and the spinner blade may pivot about the fishing line with the eyelet as a fulcrum which acts to pivot and vibrate the spinner blades in response to tension in the fishing line. In Feltman U.S. Pat. No. 3,750,325 a rigid wire has one arm connected to one spinner while a second arm is connected to a weight which in turn is connected to the hook and another spinner, the weight having fins thereon, the entire combination being claimed to provide rapid vibration.
It can thus be seen that numerous attempts have been made in the prior art to improve the vibration and flutter characteristics of spinner bait lures so as to attract a fish. In all of the known prior art the spinner baits effectively have a V-shaped rigid wire form having one end attached to the weight which carries the hook, and the other end attached to the spinner blades. In the lure of Opperman et al. the crotch of the V-shaped wire includes an eyelet through which the fishing line passes and is attached to the weight. In Feltman a spinner is mounted intermediate the hook and the weight. Parmlee U.S. Pat. No. 2,857,703 shows another arrangement in which a number of spinner blades are used in conjunction with a plurality of hooks, the spinner blades being attached by wires to one limb of a V-shaped weight and the hooks being connected to wires attached to the upper limb of the weight.
It can thus be seen that the fishing art is constantly seeking improvements to the spinner bait lures in the art. Improvements which permit additional vibration and flutter are continuosly sought. Additionally, it is desirable to have the blades mounted so as to stand up and rotate freely while the lure is falling through the water. Another desirable feature of a lure is that of providing it with rapid retrieval capabilities. Because of the configurations of the prior spinner bait lures increased drag has resulted in slower retrieval and greater force is required to pull the lure through the water once a fish has been snagged.